SixPapaCharlie
May the force be with you
- Joined
- Aug 8, 2013
- Messages
- 16,070
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Sixer
I am sure there is a technical term for this but I don't know it.
Yesterday, closing in on my destination I got on top of a layer. Well actually in between a few layers. Clear skies behind me but sheet of white in front.
Interesting thing I learned. Off in the distance about 8-10 miles in front of me, I could see a clear cutoff in the clouds and ground. Like a line where the clouds just stop.
So I flew to it. When I got there, it was gone.
I saw another one so I did this a 2nd time. Clearly there it's where the cloud cover ends and I see ground... Nope.
I would get to the "ridge" and both times it was a small valley in the clouds perpendicular to my heading. That along with a higher layer was creating a very dark shadow. The contrast was enough that it appeared like obvious end of the clouds.
I had almost 3 hours of fuel remaining but let's say I had 1 hour or less. Flying to that ridge a couple times would have put me into a "time to confess" situation.
I ended up flying about 20 min past my destination flying for those spots before turning back and finding a hole large enough to circle down through.
Before going down, I got the weather where I was at and it had gone from VFR to MVFR. I got below them about 1300. Ground elevation was ~200 so no biggie.
Pretty non eventful and of course 5 minutes after I touched down, it broke apart and blue skies.
Lesson learned I guess: I am not one to take less fuel than max weight will allow but if I had, it would be way smarter to go ahead and either turn back to where I know it was clear or Let ATC know rather then try for those ridges. No reason to not carry more than enough fuel if you are VFR.
I don't have a good picture to describe what I was seeing. This is kinda sort of similar. Top of the photo looks like the clouds stop.
What I was seeing looked a lot more like ground beyond the ridge.
Yesterday, closing in on my destination I got on top of a layer. Well actually in between a few layers. Clear skies behind me but sheet of white in front.
Interesting thing I learned. Off in the distance about 8-10 miles in front of me, I could see a clear cutoff in the clouds and ground. Like a line where the clouds just stop.
So I flew to it. When I got there, it was gone.
I saw another one so I did this a 2nd time. Clearly there it's where the cloud cover ends and I see ground... Nope.
I would get to the "ridge" and both times it was a small valley in the clouds perpendicular to my heading. That along with a higher layer was creating a very dark shadow. The contrast was enough that it appeared like obvious end of the clouds.
I had almost 3 hours of fuel remaining but let's say I had 1 hour or less. Flying to that ridge a couple times would have put me into a "time to confess" situation.
I ended up flying about 20 min past my destination flying for those spots before turning back and finding a hole large enough to circle down through.
Before going down, I got the weather where I was at and it had gone from VFR to MVFR. I got below them about 1300. Ground elevation was ~200 so no biggie.
Pretty non eventful and of course 5 minutes after I touched down, it broke apart and blue skies.
Lesson learned I guess: I am not one to take less fuel than max weight will allow but if I had, it would be way smarter to go ahead and either turn back to where I know it was clear or Let ATC know rather then try for those ridges. No reason to not carry more than enough fuel if you are VFR.
I don't have a good picture to describe what I was seeing. This is kinda sort of similar. Top of the photo looks like the clouds stop.
What I was seeing looked a lot more like ground beyond the ridge.